All in a Day's Work
by Medie Shanachie
Summary: Team building 101 aka why Aiden didn't help Daniel during Pegasus Project. Warning Whumpage of Lorne ahead.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: Actual verbiage from "Pegasus Project" written by Brad Wright, transcript from http:// www. twiztv. com/ scripts/ stargate/ season10/ stargate- 1003. htm and transcribed by TARA for Yahoo! Groups : SG1Transcripts._

_In my own little world, Aiden is one of the few linguists on Atlantis and also a good friend of Daniel's so it stands to reason that she would be there when Daniel visited Atlantis looking for Merlin's weapon. This is my explanation of why she wasn't in the holographic room and why she wasn't helping Daniel. Poor Lorne, I'm so mean to him. This takes place near the beginning of Aiden's association with Lorne's team and is part of the team building stuff I haven't gotten around to doing. It will be three parts (although part two is really really short.)_

_Disclaimer--anything recognizably Stargate isn't mine and I'm not making any money--that includes Daniel, Vala, Elizabeth, Chuck and Atlantis. On the other hand, Deke, Aiden, and the three Marines are mine, although I can't claim all their actions--they tend to take my ideas and run with them--since this was supposed to be really short and yeah it just kept going while I was at work._

* * *

Daniel used his hold on Vala's elbow to steer her in the right direction. "Where's Aiden?" he asked Elizabeth as they descended to the main level. "I half expected her to pounce on me as soon as I left the _Odyssey_, babbling excitedly."

Elizabeth smiled; it was an apt description of the younger linguist. "She probably would have if she was on Atlantis." At Daniel's worried look, she hastened to reassure him, "She's off-world at the moment with Major Lorne's team. She should be back within the hour and then she'll be at your disposal."

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Aiden? Is off-world? Are we talking about the same Aiden Bancroft?"

Elizabeth nodded, waving a hand at the door crystals. "She's not a permanent member of the team, but if she has to go into the field or they need a linguist, she goes with them. It seems to be a good fit for the most part."

Daniel shook his head. "I'm just impressed you got Aiden out of the lab and into the field."

"It was the lure of discovery, I think," Elizabeth replied as they entered the holographic room. "We use this room sparingly now. It's a bit of a power hog and we can access the database from workstations throughout the city when we need to…but for the first-time user…this is the place." She took a deep breath as she stepped up onto the step for the activation platform causing the hologram to appear.

It had the look of an Ancient; all ethereal being and haughtiness. "Hello," she said in a voice not quite British upper class, but not really American either. It's hard to describe the accent, but it definitely didn't come from Earth.

Elizabeth turned to Daniel and explained, "It's as simple as asking questions to the holographic interface…For example..."

She trailed off as the Atlantis operator's voice came over the radio "Dr. Weir to Stargate operations."

She sighed in frustration. "I'm sorry…" Reaching up, she tapped her radio and responded, "I'll be right there." She stepped off the platform and headed for the door, pausing to brush a lock of hair out of her face as she turned back to explain, "The interface can walk you through your search until I get back. Oh, I should probably warn you… if she seems a little bit patronizing, the program was designed to teach very young children the Lantian systems."

Daniel rocked forward on his heels and gave a not quite smile at her hurry. "Thank you," he responded.

She waved and left, her mind already occupied by the summons to the control room. Elizabeth hurried into the 'gate room, not quite running, but moving swiftly. When people immediately got out of her way more alertly than usual, she knew it was no idle summons despite the lack of panic in Chuck's voice. "What is it?" she asked Chuck as she took up position behind him, eying both the open wormhole and the raised shield.

"Major Lorne's team, ma'am," Chuck replied. "They're under fire and reporting injuries. They'd like to be cleared to come home."

"Did Major Lorne transmit his IDC?" she responded, wondering why the shield hadn't been lowered already.

"McFadden did, ma'am, not Lorne. And it's correct."

"Lower the shield," she ordered. "And call a med team to the 'gate room. Have security ready to provide cover fire." It could be that McFadden was just closer to the 'gate and had been the one to dial, but there could also be a problem with the Major. Until they got the team home, they just wouldn't know.

She flinched as the first things through the 'gate were arrows, then of all things a knife. Security ducked, but didn't return fire since they couldn't know if the team was coming through yet. Chuck would have transmitted the all clear at the same time he dropped the shield so depending on their situation, they would be coming through at any moment.

McFadden exited at that moment, his back to the 'gate room and firing towards the top of the wormhole. Deke quickly followed him, then Wall and Aiden who were supporting Lorne between them. Elizabeth could see that the Marine was taking most of the major's weight, but Aiden was supporting some of it in addition to two packs. As soon as Murray slid through after them, skidding across the floor on his butt as he tried to keep hold of the grenade in his hand, the entire team began yelling, "Shut it down!"

Just before the wormhole collapsed, Murray chucked the grenade through. As the wormhole disengaged, they all dropped to the floor as if they were puppets who's strings had been cut, although Wall and Aiden made sure that Lorne's fall was at least somewhat controlled.

Security and the med team rushed forward as Elizabeth hurried down from the control room. The entire team sprawled inelegantly on the floor, but only Aiden, Wall, and Lorne had more than blood splatters on them. Aiden lay on her back, looking not unlike a turtle turned upside down since she hadn't bothered to remove the back from her back before falling, and waved off the med team when they approached her. "The blood's Evan's," she told them when they tried to help her. "He got hit twice and we didn't have time to really do anything." She tried to struggle into a sitting position when one of the doctors remained with her as the majority of the group moved over to the major and when she couldn't, the doctor pulled her upright. "Check him for poisons, too. The society's right for dosing the arrows."

The doctor crouched down by her nodded at her words and called across the intervening space to the team working on Lorne. They had already gotten a line started and were loading him onto a gurney for transport. "You still need to go to the infirmary to get checked, " he told her as she shrugged the pack off and handed her nine millimeter off to the waiting security guard.

"I know that," Aiden snapped, "but I can go under my own power."

The doctor backed off, not pushing her, and turned to the rest of the team, allowing Elizabeth to step in and ask, "What happened?"

Before Aiden could answer, Deke spoke up from where he was still sprawled on the floor, "What happened is _Doctor_ Bancroft here pissed off the natives and then had to get her precious laptop instead of hauling ass when they attacked. Lorne got hit protecting her." He got to his feet as he finished speaking.

Aiden stood up and put her hands on her hips, glaring up at the taller man. "Evan ordered me to grab those packs including both our laptops so don't give me shit about following his orders. If you've got a problem, take it up with him."

"When we're under fire, you drop everything and haul ass to the 'gate," Deke responded. "And you let the military men handle the problem."

"Bite me, Deke. You're no more military than I am. I follow Evan's orders under fire, not yours." She didn't give an inch as he advanced on her. "I am not some hothouse flower to be defended by the menfolk. And if you pick me up, so help me, Deke, I will kick you in the nuts so hard you'll be singing soprano for a month."

"Doctor. Mister Zulu," Elizabeth rapped out when Aiden's threat didn't stop Deke's advance. "That will be enough out of the both of you." The whip of her tone brought them up short where nothing else would have. She glared at both of them, making sure her ire was clear. "This is not the place to air your displeasure with Doctor Bancroft, Mister Zulu," she continued in a quieter but no less harsh tone. She turned to McFadden, who had been watching in shock with the rest of the 'gate room. "Gunnery Sergeant," she said more calmly, "what happened?"

McFadden swallowed hard, looking at his two teammates as if worried they would turn their anger on him if he spoke. Elizabeth waited impatiently for him to answer, although it didn't show on her face. Finally he began, "We went to the site. We were there for about two hours when some natives showed up and told us we were trespassing on the sacred ground of the Ancients. The doc talked to them, explained we were just taking notes not moving anything. Lorne showed them some of his sketches, but that only seemed to agitate them more." He took a deep breath. "They did the normal doom and gloom thing, 'the spirits of the Ancients will come to get you because you've disturbed their sacred place', that sort of thing and went away." He shifted on his feet anxiously. "I don't know if they thought we were unarmed or what, but about twenty minutes later, they came running back at us, screaming like banshees and firing arrows and throwing knives. Murray caught a knife in the vest," McFadden rolled his eyes at that since the young Marine was notorious for getting injured, "and Lorne started yelling orders. Aim to scare and if that didn't work to injure. He yelled for Doc to grab the laptops and whatever else she could, but leave whatever she couldn't carry, and for everyone to haul ass for the 'gate. I didn't see him get hit, but I did see Wall and Doc go back for him and her dump the other two packs she had grabbed." He shifted again and glanced at Deke and Aiden who had settled somewhat during his recitation. "Ma'am, the situation was bad. We got everyone through the 'gate and Doc was following orders. She didn't slow us down and Lorne coulda gotten hit at any point." He looked directly at Aiden as he finished, "The major's injuries are _not_ her fault."

Elizabeth took a deep breath when it was clear he finished and nodded tightly. "Thank you, Gunnery Sergeant." She motioned to the three Marines. "Why don't you report to the infirmary and then get cleaned up?" She phrased the order as a request rather than an actual order since she walked a thin line with the military. Technically she was in charge of them, but she tried hard not to actually order them, leaving that to Sheppard or Lorne. "I'm assuming any injuries you have are superficial or you would have gone with the med team?"

They all nodded and McFadden answered for them, "Yes, ma'am."

"You three are dismissed then. Doctor Bancroft, Mister Zulu, my office. Now." She went up the stairs ahead of them and only years of discipline kept her back straight and her tread even. She could feel herself vibrating with anger. Only the fact that her office walls and door were glass prevented her from slamming the door shut after they had all entered. "If the two of you _ever_ have an argument like that again in the 'gate room, I will confine you both to quarters until you can shipped back to Earth on the_Daedalus_. That was beyond unprofessional." When Deke opened his mouth, she continued before he could do more than draw breath to break in, "You have no defense here, Mister Zulu, your attack on Doctor Bancroft was uncalled for. Especially in light of Gunnery Sergeant McFadden's report." She glared the man into submission. "Doctor Bancroft, you are not without blame here, but you were provoked. For now, Doctor Jackson is in the hologram room and has requested your assistance. I suggest you go there, inform him you need to get cleaned up and medically cleared, and then return to help him."

Aiden nodded and said quietly, "I'd like to be informed of Evan's status if I'm to help Daniel."

Deke made a disparaging noise. "Yes, run and hide in your books. That's all you care about anyway."

Aiden spun around in her seat to glare at him and even Elizabeth wanted to take a step back at the anger in her blue eyes. "What I do and don't care about is none of your business," she grated out. "Evan is my _friend_, but _I_ can't do anything for him right now. I know to let the medical doctors do_their_ jobs. I _can_ help Daniel though." She got to her feet. "Doctor Weir, may I be dismissed?"

Elizabeth nodded, then turned to Deke once the linguist had left the office. "I know classified files wouldn't stop you," she told him, "but Doctor Bancroft's file isn't above your security rating anyway. You might want to consider reading it. I think some of the things you discover would surprise you."

Deke had deflated after the linguist left; the anger draining out of him along with the adrenaline. "I'll consider it," he said. "For what it's worth, I _am_ sorry. Lorne's going to skin me when hears about this."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at his phrasing. The major had always seemed very laid back to her; less prone to excitement or anger than Sheppard and his team certainly came back injured less often; Murray's accident prone incidents aside. "Skin you?" she questioned.

Deke winced; obviously he had said more than he meant to. "Never mind, ma'am," he answered. "We'll work it out." He got up to leave. "And I promise, no more screaming matches in the 'gate room."

Elizabeth sat down at her desk after he had left and put her head in her hands. Maybe she should have gone into teaching; surely six year olds couldn't be more difficult than this? After a few moments of deep breathing, she pushed her chair away from her desk and went back to the control room to see what other crisis might require her attention.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Note: Part two--sorry this is so short, but honestly it doesn't really need to be any longer. waves to Daniel and this is the last appearance of Daniel in this story since this is really an Aiden/Lorne/Lorne's team story._

_Standard disclaimer on anything recognizably Stargate; if ya really want to know what that means, go read the one I wrote for Chapter One._

* * *

Aiden ignored the looks sent her way as she hurried to the hologram room. She waved hand at the crystals and entered, already speaking, "Daniel, I just have to get cleaned up and cleared by a doctor and then I'll be back to help. Have you had any luck so far?"

Daniel raised his head and glared at the dark haired woman with him. "Not so far," he answered Aiden, "but I'm not sure how much of that is Vala's interference and how much of it is ten thou..." he had turned to look at Aiden at last as he spoke and now he stopped mid-word. "Good gods, Aiden, what happened to you?!"

Aiden looked down and grimaced. She had forgotten she was still wearing the blood-stained t-shirt from the mission. It was starting to stick to her as the blood dried. "I'm fine," she told him. "The blood's Evan's." At his confused look, she elaborated, "Major Lorne's. Short version; pissed off natives armed with bows, arrows, and knives attacked us. Evan got hit at least twice in the retreat. I need to clean up and also get cleared and I'd like to check on him."

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Evan?" he questioned. Any other time, he would have teased her about the way her voice softened on his name, but she looked so drained at the moment, he didn't have the "Why don't you do what you need to do and check on your friend, then get some rest?" he suggested. "At the rate I'm going, I may be at this for a few days and you can give me a new perspective later."

When Aiden hugged herself and didn't even flinch at the feeling of the blood, he knew he had made the right decision. "You sure?" she asked and when he nodded, she smiled tiredly. "Thanks, Daniel. Call me if you need my help sooner."

Vala waited until the door shut behind Aiden to ask, "So that's the Aiden you asked Doctor Weir about?"

Daniel nodded as he considered the next question he would ask. "That's Aiden," he confirmed.

"She's pretty. Smaller than I imagined. Did you ever have sex with her?"

"Va-La!" Daniel yelped. He turned to glare at her as she danced out of range, giggling. Knowing that getting angry with her just encouraged her, he began questioning the hologram again.


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's note: And now finally the end...I don't know who was more stubborn here--Beckett, Aiden, or Lorne. But I think its done!_

_Standard disclaimer, just add Beckett. See chapter one for the actual one._

* * *

When Aiden walked into infirmary, there was a brief flurry of activity at her appearance before Beckett reached her. "Are you all right, love?" he asked as she blinked at all the people who had gathered around her. He put a hand on her arm and gently guided her out of the main through-fare.

She looked around, trying to find the Marines or Lorne in the bustle of the infirmary. "I'm fine. Well, okay," she replied. "The blood is Evan's."

Beckett helped her onto a bed and drew a curtain around it, enclosing them in some privacy. "How about you let me be the judge of that?" he requested gently. "I know you're a doctor, but I'm the one who went to medical school." He reached for a pair of scissors. "I'm just going to cut your shirt off, all right?" He watched her carefully as he cut the shirt off disposing of it into the provided bin. She wasn't saying anything, just staring into space as he clipped the shirt and peeled it off her skin. She shivered when her skin was exposed to the air, but she still didn't say anything. Beckett handed her a warm washcloth. "Wash yourself down, love, so I can check you over," he instructed, then backed away as she began to swipe it down her arms and torso. He chatted inanely at her as she followed directions, trying to get a response out of her and was concerned when he didn't get any. This wasn't like Aiden. Normally when she came to the infirmary, it was all he could do to get her to sit still long enough to do an exam and draw the blood he needed for tests. Now she sat, waiting for directions and not even asking how much longer she would be. He was also concerned that she hadn't asked about Lorne or anyone else from the team. He took the washcloth back from her and deposited in a basin, then quickly looked her over. She had a couple of scratches, but nothing worse. "Aiden," he said softly. "I need you to look at me." She looked up, meeting his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"I told you, Carson. I'm fine. The blood is all Evan's." She looked around for something to cover herself with. "Can I go now?"

He handed her a scrub top and watched as she pulled it over her head, tugging her hair out and smoothing it back. "Are ye going to check on the major before you go?" he asked. "Or the other lads?"

Aiden paused at the edge of the curtain. "I'll come back and check on Evan later. And I'm sure the Marines have gone back to Little Tripoli. Deke and I probably shouldn't be in the same part of the city right now."

"Aye, the Marines have returned to Little Tripoli to report in, but I'm sure they'll be back to sit with the major once they've done that. Deke has also left." He paused and waited for her to say something, but when she didn't, he continued, "The major is going to be here for a while, at least until he wakes up and then we'll need to keep any eye on him for a while."

Aiden stopped and turned to face Beckett again. "What do you mean 'until he wakes up'?"

Beckett frowned. Even though she hadn't come directly to the infirmary from the 'gate room, gossip normally traveled faster than feet in Atlantis. "The major is still unconscious," he explained. "You were correct about the arrows being poisoned. Enough of it bleed out from him not having his wounds bound that he didn't die, but he is still unconscious."

Aiden nodded. "Can I sit with him? Until he wakes up?"

Beckett took her elbow and steered her in the direction of the room they had put the major in. "You can stay with him as long as you don't disturb him," he informed her. He got her settled on the chair by Lorne's bedside, then patted her on the shoulder, and left her. Aiden fussed with the sheets for a minute and looked at the monitors, even though she couldn't understand more than that all his vitals were steady. Then she settled back in the chair to wait.

* * *

Lorne rolled his head to the side, looking for a glass of water. As he turned, he spied a dark head resting on the edge of the bed. He reached out and ran his hand across her hair, but Aiden didn't stir. "Aiden," he croaked and when she still didn't move, he tried again, "Aiden." He brushed her hair away from her face and patted her cheek. She sat up at that, blinking sleepily at him. He smiled at her. "Hey." 

She stretched and yawned, then focused on him. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"Thirsty," he whispered.

"Oh. Right." She looked around and spied the pitcher and glass sitting on the near-by table. She quickly poured some water and stuck a straw in, then helped him sit up a little so he could drink. When he finished, she set it back on the table. "You okay? You want the doctor or something? I think Carson's still here."

He snagged her belt loop as she started to turn away. "I'm fine, Aiden. The doctor will figure out I'm awake soon enough. How are you?"

She shrugged, playing with the edge of his sheet. "I'm fine. Some scratches on my arms. Carson checked me out. No lasting damage." She flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Evan, I'm sorry. I'll talk to Doctor Weir and get myself removed from the team."

"Whoa. What? Hang on a minute. What are you talking about?" Lorne had a feeling he had missed something and not all of it had to do with being unconscious for however many hours. "Why are you asking to be removed from the team? And why are you sorry?"

She reached out and ran her finger lightly over the bandage on his bicep. "I got you injured. You got hit protecting me, no matter what McFadden said. If I had done what I should have and just left the packs, you wouldn't have been slowed down and you wouldn't have gotten hit." She rubbed her hand across her eyes, swiping away tears that threatened to fall. "Deke was right, it's my fault you got hurt."

"Hey, hey, hey." Lorne shifted and then realized there was no way for him to reach her because she stood too far away and he was encumbered by too many wires and monitors. "Don't cry. No crying," he ordered. "Aiden, this was _not_ your fault. It was _no one's_ fault. It was just a bad series of coincidences."

"It's my fault for not being able to run fast enough with the packs and slowing the team down," Aiden argued.

"You're smaller than all of us. You did the best you could. You were carrying four packs at the time and I know you dropped at least two of them when I got hit. It could have been any of us that got hit." He reached out as her hand that had been fiddling with the sheet drifted close enough to him and gripped it tightly. "It was _not_ your fault. I don't know how else to tell you. And if you request off my team, I will get out of this bed and kick your ass myself."

Aiden laughed, although the sound was watery. "You get out of this bed and you won't have to kick my ass, Carson will do it for you or he'll stick me with the really big needles."

"Aye, I will," Beckett said as he entered the area where they were. "I said you could stay if you didn't disturb him, lass."

"I didn't," Aiden protested as Lorne confirmed, "She didn't bother me."

"Not disturbing is not the same as not bothering. Arguing with him is enough to agitate him," Beckett corrected as he began to check the lines and monitors attached to Lorne. "Are you feeling any pain, Major?"

"No, Doc. I'm fine." Lorne shifted on the bed and smiled briefly at Aiden who had moved to the end of the bed so she wasn't in Beckett's way. "When am I getting out of here?"

"Not for a while, Major, I'm afraid. You were exposed to an alien poison in your system and we've got to make sure there aren't any side effects." Beckett nodded to himself at the read-outs. "But so far everything looks good. No pain?"

Lorne shook his head. "No. None. Should I have some?"

"Well, you were shot, lad, I would expect you to have some, but that might be a side effect of what you were exposed to. Why don't you try to get some more sleep and I'll check on you in a little while?" He turned to Aiden. "And you, lass, he's awake and you've talked to him and he's reassured you so off to your quarters now."

Lorne made a motion, drawing Beckett's attention back to him. "Could she stay? Just til I fall asleep again?" he requested.

Beckett frowned and finally relented. "All right, but just until you fall asleep again. And you're not to keep him talking, lass. You both need rest and you won't get it in a chair and he won't get it if you two are talking." He waited until they both nodded, then left the cubicle.

Aiden took the seat in the chair she had been in before once Beckett left. "So are you convinced not to leave the team?" Lorne asked in a low voice.

She nodded. "Yes. I won't talk to Doctor Weir." She pulled his sheet up, fussing with it until he batted her hands away. "Now hush and go to sleep before Carson returns and kicks me out."

Lorne rolled his head to the side so he could see her as he started to let his eyes drift shut. "You go back to your quarters and get some sleep, too," he told her. "No going to the lab to work."

"I promise," she soothed him as his eyes closed. "I promise," she repeated, even though she was pretty sure he was already asleep. "I promise this won't happen again."


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's Note: So I really had intended to end the story with the last chapter, but my cousin read it and asked me "What is in Aiden's file that would make Deke respect her?" So this doesn't exactly answer that question, but will hopefully give you some idea and also maybe fill in some blanks about Aiden's professional career. If something sounds familiar here about Aiden's background--yes there is a reason, but I'm not going to say anything here, it will come up later and you can email me about it if you want to question me. Special thanks to my friend, Daren, for the name of the movie Deke asks Aiden about._

_Standard disclaimer on all things Atlantis that belong to MGM while Aiden and the team belong to me._

* * *

**Epilogue: A Week or So Later**

Lorne frowned as he hobbled into his office. While Deke behind his desk wasn't that unusual a sight, it was never a comfortable one; especially when Deke had his laptop open. "What are you doing?" he asked as he eased himself into a chair on the wrong side of the desk.

Deke looked up and frowned himself when he caught sight of the major. "Are you supposed to be out of bed?" he asked.

"Beckett released me," Lorne replied. "Don't change the subject."

"Yeah, released you to go to bed in your own quarters I'm sure. And I'm reading the doc's file. Weir thought I might find it interesting," Deke answered as he studied the other man.

Lorne frowned. "How many laws, rules, and security features are you breaking?"

"None, a couple, and you really don't want to know," Deke told him. "Have you read her file?"

"Parts of it. She was at the SGC the same time I was, but I never met her; probably because she never went off-world and I didn't spend much time around Jackson's people." Lorne shifted, trying to find a comfortable position. "I scanned her file when we got back from M3X-721, but didn't actually read it in depth."

Deke snorted. "Figures that she was one of Jackson's minions. You know she speaks something like twelve languages including a couple of dead ones?" Deke asked, continuing to scan the file.

"And she can probably cuss you out in all of them," Lorne pointed out.

"Wouldn't surprise me. That girl's got a mouth worse than a Marine." He scrolled down farther. "Huh. She was in Afghan."

"When? And why?" Lorne asked, suddenly curious.

"Early 2000s. Says she was working with a CID unit out of Kabul commanded by a Lieutenant David Bamford. They were on maneuvers it looks like," Deke paused, frowned, and tapped a couple of keys; looking for more information. "Well, whatever they were doing, it's not in her file. They were out in the field when one of the Humvees in their unit was hit with an IED. Says she helped the guys in the second Humvee lay down cover fire while a Sergeant Carter went in after the guys who were trapped in the hit Humvee. Seems he only got one of the trapped guys out though. Apparently whoever was her boss decided it wasn't safe for a female civilian not long after that and she got shipped out. She went to Egypt for a bit after that and then to the SGC."

Lorne nodded, trying to picture the small linguist under fire. "So she's seen action even without being military?"

"She doesn't seem to pick safe assignments," Deke agreed. "UN, Army CID, Air Force, Marines, Navy. It looks like the only branch she hasn't translated for is the Coast Guard. And it looks like she's been on just about every continent except Antarctica. Oh, no, wait, she has been there. She was down with Jackson helping with the Outpost." Deke shook his head. "Are you sure she's only thirty? And that she's not a mutant?"

"She's not a mutant, Deke," Lorne responded.

"You sure? I mean who does all this stuff? She's gotta be a mutant."

"I'm not a mutant, arschloch," Aiden said. "And Carson told you to go to bed, Major, not to your office."

The two men turned to see Aiden in the doorway with McFadden, Wall, and Murray behind her. "What happened to calling me, Evan, Doc?" Lorne replied.

She put her hands on her hips and glared at him, causing Lorne to bite his cheek to keep from smiling. Her hair was mussed from whatever she had been doing and there was a smudge of dirt on her cheek and the tip of her nose. She looked more cute than intimidating. "Don't try to derail my thought train," she scolded. "I know you're tired of lazing around, but Carson isn't going to let you return to duty any sooner if you push yourself into a relapse." She turned to Deke. "And don't think I don't know your part in this little drama. Control told us how long he's been in here."

Lorne opened his mouth to defend both of them, but Deke beat him to the punch. "You're right," he told the linguist as he rose to his full six foot eight inch height. "I didn't make Lorne go to his quarters even though I knew Beckett had ordered him there." He took a deep breath. "And I shouldn't have gone off on you in the 'gate room when we returned. You really were doing the best you could and you were right in that you were following Lorne's orders. Friends?" He held his hand out to her and grinned at the gape-mouthed looks on the three Marines' faces. "Shut your mouths, boys, before you swallow some big honkin' space bug."

Aiden laughed as her petite hand was dwarfed by Deke's mammoth one. "Friends," she agreed. "Let's try to keep our solider boys in four distinct pieces and not tear strips out of each other's hides, deal?"

"Deal," Deke replied. They both turned to look at Lorne who was now regarding them with apprehension. "What are we going to do with our head solider boy?"

Aiden held her hand out to McFadden. "Mac?" The red-haired Marine handed her a syringe which she quickly passed to Deke. "Pain killer," she explained at his questioning look. "And there's a wheelchair in the hall."

"Ya know, I can manage to get back to my quarters on my crutches," Lorne said, starting to lever himself out of the seat. He yelped in pain as he put too much weight on his leg and arm.

"Sure ya can, Lorne," Deke agreed as he jabbed the major with the needle. "Mac, bring the chair in. Wall, Murray, come put him in the chair."

Long practice of working together let the two Marines move the major easily and almost painlessly into the wheelchair as McFadden held it steady. By the time he was settled, the shot was taking affect and the conversation of his team faded in and out of his perception. The last clear thing he heard was Deke ask, "Hey, Doc, do you like scifi movies?"

"Yeah. Sure," she replied as she noticed Lorne begin to nod off. She motioned for Wall to keep a close eye on him.

"Have you seen _Equilibrium_?"

Aiden shook her head as McFadden opened the door to Lorne's quarters. "No. I haven't even heard of that one."

"We have movie night every Tuesday that we're not on a mission. You're welcome to join us when you want," Deke offered.

They watched as the Marines manhandled Lorne into bed. "That sounds like fun. Thank you." She frowned. "Is it safe to leave him alone?"

"We'll set up a rotating schedule to stay with him," McFadden answered. "Would you like to be added?"

Aiden nodded as she fussed with Lorne's blankets and Murray dragged a chair over since he was taking the first shift. "Yes, please," she replied.

Deke herded them all out of the room once both men were settled. "Mac, why don't you walk the doc back to her lab?" he suggested when they were outside again. When Aiden started to protest, he silenced her with a gesture. "We look out for our own," he explained and with those words, Aiden knew she was accepted by the mysterious black man.


End file.
